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Operation Buccaneer
Operation Buccaneer was a military contingency plan of the Solarian League Navy. Planning Operation Buccaneer was designed in mid-1922 PD to cripple the orbital industry of a number of independent star systems as a warning to other Solarian League member states against associating with the Star Empire of Manticore and other Grand Alliance star nations, and in particular the League Core worlds from attempting to secede from the League as the Republic of Beowulf was doing. This was mostly psychological warfare, meant to keep more systems from taking the side of the League's enemies in the ongoing war. Buccaneer was planned in two phases, including resupplying task forces with two-stage missiles. "Phase One" included attacks on more than one system - in case of at least one task force. It was planned in the first phase to hit targets across an arc of over four hundred light-years. The neutral Exapia System was replaced during the planning by the seceding Hypatia System as a target. The plan included a "Parthian Shot" clause, where if the Solarian task force encountered an Alliance defense too strong to defeat, it was instructed to launch missiles at orbital targets at extreme range while withdrawing from the system, without giving the civilian population time to evacuate. This plan was made despite the risk of an Eridani Edict violation. ( ) Execution In "Phase One", since July 1922 PD, the SLN attacked eight neutral star nations and one system during the process of secession from the Solarian League with eight hundred battlecruisers. Two task forces were destroyed without completing their tasks. Seven neutral systems lost their orbital industry, but in two cases some minor military engagements occurred. Due to SLN's losses at least two neutral star nationsNot indicated in the novel. avoided Solarian aggression as secondary targets. ;Cachalot : Buccaneer was first executed by Task Force 783 under the command of Admiral Vincent Capriotti in August 1922 PD. Upon his arrival in the independent Cachalot SystemFrom the Dzung System., Capriotti contacted System President Miriam Jahnke and informed her of his orders. He demanded the surrender of the armed units of the Cachalot System Patrol as well. Capriotti also gave her 72 hours to evacuate her system's orbital facilities. Once the evacuation was completed, his ships opened fire on Cachalot's orbital infrastructure, destroying nearly two millennia of industrial build-up and investment, and robbing 1.7 billion people of their livelihoods. ( ) ;Ajay : In August 1922 PD, Task Force 1027, commanded by Admiral Jane Isotalo, attempted to execute a similar strike on the independent and highly League-critical Ajay System, but was unable to when it unexpectedly encountered Cruiser Squadron 912 of the Royal Manticoran Navy, commanded by Commodore Sir Martin Lessem, at the Prime Terminus of the Prime-Ajay Hyper Bridge. Much of the Solarian force was destroyed by Manticoran LACs. ( ) ;Hypatia : In August 1922 PD, Task Force 1030Deployed in the Genovese System. was dispatched to the Hypatia System upon the latter's referendum to secede from the League, with orders to carry out Buccaneer maneuvers against the system's orbital infrastructure should the local authorities refuse to ignore the referendum. This was averted when the Royal Manticoran Navy engaged TF 1030 in the Battle of Hypatia. ( ) ;Maize :The execution of the operation in the independent Maize System went flawlessly; casualties were minimalWhile presence of the Grand Alliance forces wasn't mentioned it seems another participant of engagement was local defense force., but the destruction of the orbital infrastructure was pretty much total. ( ) ;Snyder : The execution of the operation in the independent Snyder System went flawlessly. ( ) ;Waterfall : The execution of the operation in the independent Waterfall System went flawlessly. ( ) ;Golem : The execution of the operation in the independent Golem System went flawlessly. ( ) ;Kenniac : The attack on the independent Kenniac System was highly successful. ( ) : ;Bryant : Upon arriving in the independent Bryant System, Vice Admiral Gomez was met by six Manticoran cruisersUnits lighter than ''Edward Saganami''-class unit., who sparred with the SLN force only long enough to cover the retreat of two Manticoran freighters. System President McGillicuddy reaffirmed his star nation's neutrality, but Gomez still carried out his orders to the letter; he did, however, leave the Bryantese time to completely evacuate their orbital habitats. ( ) Aftermath Buccaneer's destructive effects towards its targets' economies and the disregard for civilian life showed in several of its raids made it strongly disliked by the target star nations, the Verge and Fringe star nations, the Alliance and even by several of the SLN officers responsible for carrying it out. Phase Two of Buccaneer was delayed due to the SLN's heavy losses among their battlecruisers, the primary class needed for that type of operation. The Mandarins decided to put its execution on hold and were removed from power in the aftermath of the Battle of Sol. The Solarian-Manticoran War embraced eight minor non-willing star nations without significant military strength. ( ) Legal Matters According to a statement made by Miriam Jahnke, the System President of the Cachalot System, the total destruction of the orbital industrial infrastructure in her system violated at least a half dozen interstellar treaties the Solarian League negotiated and guaranteed in addition to breaking some canons of interstellar law. ( ) Source Text of the Solarian Statement References Buccaneer, Operation